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Topic: Watcha making for dinner tonight!? (Read 213654 times)

I'm always amazed at all you creatives out there that manage to find interesting ways to use up random leftover ingredients. I have no confidence with this so DH and I never buy extra ingredients, but try to get as spot on as possible in order to have just the amount to put in the recipes we make each night. There are a few things, of course, that we always end up with extra of that I go to great lengths to try to use up randomly, but it's just usually small bits of ginger or what-have-you. The worst is parsley. Always too much and I really don't love the herb, so I hate using it when I don't absolutely have to and it often spoils before we finish it.

Use the freezer. According to the Budget Bites website you can freeze ginger and also things like lemons. I have just frozen parsley and some other leftover herbs in ziplock bags.

For leftover foods I have a very simple Norwegian dish, called Pytt i Panne. You dice potatoes, unions, carrots, peppers, bacon or any other kind of meat or vegetable you have left over. All roughly cut the same size. You might want to precook the potato dices in the microwave for some minutes. After that, you put everything in a wok and stir fry it until done. Add herbs and spices. Ready to serve.

Use the freezer. According to the Budget Bites website you can freeze ginger and also things like lemons. I have just frozen parsley and some other leftover herbs in ziplock bags.

I have always found frozen herbs to be limp and soggy when they defrost from the freezer. No? Except maybe like thyme or rosemary, with their thick stems and tiny leaves. I guess if you are going to cook the herbs it might still be ok? But it seems like those kind of leafy herbs like parsley are usually used as garnish and I feel a little sad putting that limp stuff on my food!

Ginger keeps indefinitely in the fridge if you peel (or scrape) it, cut it into "coins" and put in a jar which you then fill with sherry (or not "fill", but you want the ginger to be under the sherry level). Bonus: the leftover sherry is great added to stir-fry-type things.

I use leftover parsley in green sauce: take off the cruddy-looking parts, add lemon juice (maybe one lemon per full batch of parsley), enough olive oil to get the stuff to emulsify (I dunno, start with 1/3 cup and add more if necessary), and salt to taste. grind to bits with a immersion blender. When it's smooth and tastes good, you're done. This is great on anything bean and/or tomato-related, or on grilled meat. If you want to get really fancy, you can toss in an anchovy or two.

We had homemade pizza for dinner: DS15 wants to take pizza slices for lunches this week, so WTF, why not: we made 5 (three small ones for dinner, and two more for his lunches) with mushrooms, marinated peppers, tiny pieces of salami, and I used up a couple of TB of leftover goat cheese on one of them.

I bought some veggie burgers on sale that came in a box. The damn box took up so much room in my freezer that I cooked the burgers for dinner, along with roasted rainbow carrots and grilled asparagus. I grilled the burgers, then used the same grill pan for the asparagus. Did the carrots in the toaster oven. Easy-peasy cleanup.

Use the freezer. According to the Budget Bites website you can freeze ginger and also things like lemons. I have just frozen parsley and some other leftover herbs in ziplock bags.

I have always found frozen herbs to be limp and soggy when they defrost from the freezer. No? Except maybe like thyme or rosemary, with their thick stems and tiny leaves. I guess if you are going to cook the herbs it might still be ok? But it seems like those kind of leafy herbs like parsley are usually used as garnish and I feel a little sad putting that limp stuff on my food!

This winter my DH bought some bags of frozen coriander leaves, produced in Iceland. They worked to give the stir fry dish a coriander taste. No, they don't look great, but I don't use it on top of the dishes. Yesterday I used oregano that I had frozen and the stir fry dish worked out well.Fresh is of course nicer, but if it will otherwise expire, then freezing it is a better alternative.

I love pozole and miss it so much! I'll have to see if I can make it this winter.

We had a curried lentil soup. Red lentils, coconut milk, crushed tomatoes and cilantro. Haven't had it in a long time. It was great. Made sweet potato fries on the side, so the meal was a little monochrome orange, but tasty.

Plus, I started with a whole chicken, so I have another dinner's worth of chicken broth and shredded chicken. It'll be chicken-and-veggie soup later this week.

YUM. I really need to make pozole. It has been far too long.

We save it for winter, and I'm always pleased at how easy it is to make, if you're willing to use canned hominy and chicken. Onion + hominy + shredded meat and broth + chipotles in adobo is a lovely base.

Obviously, if you're doing a "real" version (like, with pigs feet) that could be more of an endeavor...

Plus, I started with a whole chicken, so I have another dinner's worth of chicken broth and shredded chicken. It'll be chicken-and-veggie soup later this week.

YUM. I really need to make pozole. It has been far too long.

We save it for winter, and I'm always pleased at how easy it is to make, if you're willing to use canned hominy and chicken. Onion + hominy + shredded meat and broth + chipotles in adobo is a lovely base.

Obviously, if you're doing a "real" version (like, with pigs feet) that could be more of an endeavor...

I think the last time I did something in the middle: shredded rotisserie chicken and powdered dried peppers, but homemade stock (from the rotisserie chicken) and hominy cooked fresh from dried kernels.

I don’t even think my aunt, a crazy-good Mexican cook, bothers with pigs’ feet anymore. I’m good with chicken. :-)

Spagetti with blue cheese, cream and spinach. I might throw in some of the frozen herbs I found in the freezer yesterday.

I took inventar of the 3 freezers yesterday (6 drawers) and wrote the contents on a list that hangs on the fridge in the kitchen. I hope it will stimulate us to have more overview of what is in there and let it be eaten. I threw away a portion of "brown sauce with little taste 2017" and "tomato sauce 1 portion 2018?" that I don't think will be eaten again.

I also found banana slices. I asked DH how he wanted to eat them: cake, muffins, ice cream, waffles and he chose cake. So I'll make banana cake on Friday. Not for dinner but for in between. I might bring it along to a party we are going to on Saturday evening.

@Linea_Norway , that is a very funny familiar feeling, that you had something in the freezer labelled "brown sauce with little taste." Every now and then I find something labelled, for instance, "not very good chili" or "bland soup".

I'm glad you got to throw it out!

We had ravioli (from frozen) for dinner, and I realized after I'd opened the package that the Trader Joe's frozen ravioli bag also contained cubes of tomato sauce. We stuck them in the refrigerator: if they taste OK I'll dump them into tonight's chicken-vegetable soup, which will be waiting for us in a crockpot when we get home from a high school soccer game.

If they don't taste good, they're going into the compost. Life's too short!

Plus, I started with a whole chicken, so I have another dinner's worth of chicken broth and shredded chicken. It'll be chicken-and-veggie soup later this week.

YUM. I really need to make pozole. It has been far too long.

We save it for winter, and I'm always pleased at how easy it is to make, if you're willing to use canned hominy and chicken. Onion + hominy + shredded meat and broth + chipotles in adobo is a lovely base.

Obviously, if you're doing a "real" version (like, with pigs feet) that could be more of an endeavor...

I think the last time I did something in the middle: shredded rotisserie chicken and powdered dried peppers, but homemade stock (from the rotisserie chicken) and hominy cooked fresh from dried kernels.

I don’t even think my aunt, a crazy-good Mexican cook, bothers with pigs’ feet anymore. I’m good with chicken. :-)

Well, I did make the chicken stock, so there's that.

The time some mexican friends made pozole for us that was a pork stock including pigs feet, however -- that was really fantastic.

Ours is more like "a quick, fairly healthy, and tasty weeknight dinner".

Drizzle the olive oil in the bottom of the cooker; add the garlic and spices and stir to combine.

Add the remaining ingredients except the lime juice. Gently stir with a wooden spoon or vinyl spatula (you don't want to mash the beans) to mix. Cover and follow the manufacturer's instructions for slow cooking a chili with canned (not dried beans). I cooked mine on low for five to six hours, for example.

To make on the stove top:

Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat (I would use a little more olive oil); add the spices, stir and heat through for a minute; add onions and stir for two to three minutes; add the remaining ingredients except the lime. Cover the pot and bring to a simmer; lower the heat and keep the chili at a slow simmer, covered; stir now and then, and check the consistency. Add a little more broth if needed, to thin. Cook for an hour or so until all the flavors have combined and the sauce is thickened and rich.

Before serving, squeeze in the juice from half a lime; stir. Taste test for seasoning adjustments - more lime? A pinch of salt? More heat? A touch more agave? You decide.

I made cookies for a friend's party and ate four of them yesterday (they were fairly substantial cookies with icing), along with a couple of hard ciders. I need a healthy meal and to avoid sugar bombs today.

I made cookies for a friend's party and ate four of them yesterday (they were fairly substantial cookies with icing), along with a couple of hard ciders. I need a healthy meal and to avoid sugar bombs today.

We had Zuppa Toscana (Budget Bytes recipe) and cornbread on Monday. Turkey-vegetable tacos in soft corn tortillas last night.

Yum! I should start compiling a turkey-and-stuff list for the winter. I often go back after Thanksgiving and buy another turkey, just because our little local grocery chain sells antibiotic-free turkeys for a pretty good price (for natural meat).

We're making Marcella Hazan's pasta sauce...could not be easier and has lots of butter, so it's delicious! (San Marzano tomatoes, an onion cut in half and *lots* of butter simmered for the better part of an hour). We'll have it with roasted veggies, probably broccoli, maybe brussels sprouts.

We had Zuppa Toscana (Budget Bytes recipe) and cornbread on Monday. Turkey-vegetable tacos in soft corn tortillas last night.

Yum! I should start compiling a turkey-and-stuff list for the winter. I often go back after Thanksgiving and buy another turkey, just because our little local grocery chain sells antibiotic-free turkeys for a pretty good price (for natural meat).

The turkey tacos were from ground meat as a quick weeknight dinner. But shredded leftover roasted turkey would be delicious in so many things!

The Zuppa Toscana soup was even better as leftovers. I will probably make that several more times this season. Bonus: it's one of the only ways to get my husband to eat kale and not complain about it.

For the first time I bought Chinese pot stickers (pork with veg) from the freezer section at the grocery store. They were really good! Came with a sauce, like soy sauce. So good! Had egg rolls with it.

Just slipped a chuck roast into the oven (I work at home, so I'll be around) so tonight will be pot roast, probably mashed potatoes, maybe roasted squash slices, and salad or asparagus (depending on whether the lettuce or asparagus looks like it'll hold for another day).

Got the kid to help me make apple cake the other night and I slipped several slices into the freezer, so I may haul those out, too. It's been a long week for everyone here!

We ended up having Beyond Burgers last night. I've had one in a pub before and I've also tried an Impossible Burger at Burger King. I'd love to try them head to head...I didn't have a conclusion about one vs the other, but I tried them months apart.

I really liked it. Definitely felt like I was eating meat, although if I was in a blind taste test, I also definitely would have been able to pick out the "real" meat. I wonder if they build in the charcoal/grill smell/taste in the product. We cooked them in a frying pan, but I definitely got a taste of them being on a grill. I thought it was sort of funny but you know, why not?!

We ended up having Beyond Burgers last night. I've had one in a pub before and I've also tried an Impossible Burger at Burger King. I'd love to try them head to head...I didn't have a conclusion about one vs the other, but I tried them months apart.

I really liked it. Definitely felt like I was eating meat, although if I was in a blind taste test, I also definitely would have been able to pick out the "real" meat. I wonder if they build in the charcoal/grill smell/taste in the product. We cooked them in a frying pan, but I definitely got a taste of them being on a grill. I thought it was sort of funny but you know, why not?!

Those things are bizarrely satisfying. My generally carnivorous husband even likes them. I'm sure there's a bit of smoke flavoring added to the mix. I know that some beet juice is added to give them a pink tint.

@Poundwise & @OtherJen You're welcome to come over, but the cauliflower was surprisingly bland. I thought I'd put a lot of Old Bay on it, not to mention the cayenne. Next time I'll break it up into florets and roast per my usual method. Our odd-sounding favorite is broccoli tossed with a generous amount of fish sauce and roasted. That works well with cauliflower too.

I found some pho broth in the freezer, so tonight we had egg drop pho and a green bean/chicken stirfry with mushrooms and spice bean paste.

Last night I made Italian seasoned Veal. OMG it was delicious. Haven't had Veal in a longtime, years but it was so cheap on sale i had to try it. Not being a Vegan its the one meat that kinda bothers me to eat because having been to a farm where they raise the calf's for Veal is another subject. Anyhow was so good!

I was at loose ends yesterday (trying to use up the remaining produce before I went shopping this morning) so we had a salad and .. it wasn't exactly pizza, but I made focaccia (from smitten kitchen) and then topped it with a thin smear of tomato paste, slivers of salami, and cut-up mozzarella balls, and slid it back in the oven for a few minutes. I'd cooked the focaccia until the outside was a bit crispy, and the whole thing was lovely.

This morning I got a text from my kid asking if a friend could come for dinner between indoor soccer games. Sure! then I got a follow-up text reminding me the friend is vegan ... Great! but remind me what he eats? Or at least what you've actually seen him eating, because I'd hate to cook indian food and find out he doesn't eat ethnic.

Turns out the kid eats pretty much a vegan version of a standard american kid diet. So we had pasta i fagioli, aka pasta fazool, veganized with me applying almost every trick in the book to give it more umami (except dried mushrooms -- turns out we were out). I cooked down the onions to golden, then added a chopped leek, celery, and some carrots, and patiently cooked a bunch more. Then I added a bit more oil and some tomato paste, and cooked that. Then I added veg stock and blitzed everything with an immersion blender, so there were no potentially objectionable vegetable bits, then dumped in a large can of crushed tomatoes, and some white beans (from the freezer, so I just added them until it looked like a reasonable amount). It cooked for an hour or so, then the cooked pasta was dumped in and allowed to marry for a few minutes before we ladled it into bowls, with chopped kalamata olives at the table to put on top (I would've used parsley, too, but my goal was not to go back to a grocery store if possible). We also had roasted asparagus (on sale this week) and a shredded carrot salad.

I also veganized a whole-orange and olive-oil cake I was planning to make anyhow (added hazelnuts, which I ground, removed eggs, turned it into a wacky cake). Turns out I like the nuts in there so much I may add ground nuts into the next non-vegan version. (Unfortunately, I adapted and merged two recipes so heavily that I should go write everything down right now or I'll never be able to re-create it.)

My son made Nashville Hot Chicken for lunch, so dinner was leftover chicken and leftover bread sticks I made the other day. Not sure if I'll have a second dinner yet... (I work a rotating shift, so my schedule gets crazy. Some nights I only eat one meal, other nights I get really hungry and have two dinners and make a breakfast before the end of my shift.)